Print Roll Unit Provided With Pinch Rollers And A Drive Roller

ABSTRACT

A print roll unit with a housing comprising a first cover portion attached to a second cover portion, the housing including a slot. A longitudinally extending core is rotatably mounted inside the housing and an ink supply is contained within the core. A substantially cylindrical former is positioned about the core and a roll of print media is wound about the former. At least two pinch rollers are arranged with respect to a drive roller so that a de-curling force is imparted to the print media as the print media exits the housing via the slot.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a Continuation of Ser. No. 11/540,574 filed Oct. 10, 2006, which is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/336,773 filed Jan. 23, 2006, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,156,512, which is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/144,805 filed Jun. 6, 2005, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,086,724, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/831,236 filed Apr. 26, 2004, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,077,515, which is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/112,743 filed on Jul. 10, 1998, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,727,951, all of which are herein incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to digital cameras and in particular, the onboard processing of image data captured by the camera.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Recently, digital cameras have become increasingly popular. These cameras normally operate by means of imaging a desired image utilising a charge coupled device (CCD) array and storing the imaged scene on an electronic storage medium for later down loading onto a computer system for subsequent manipulation and printing out. Normally, when utilising a computer system to print out an image, sophisticated software may available to manipulate the image in accordance with requirements.

Unfortunately such systems require significant post processing of a captured image and normally present the image in an orientation to which it was taken, relying on the post processing process to perform any necessary or required modifications of the captured image. Also, much of the environmental information available when the picture was taken is lost. Furthermore, the type or size of the media substrate and the types of ink used to print the image can also affect the image quality. Accounting for these factors during post processing of the captured image data can be complex and time consuming.

The present Applicant addresses these issues with a digital camera having an image processor takes account of the lighting conditions at the time of image capture, and confirms the type of ink and media, in order to enhance the quality of the printed image. This camera is described below and in many of the cross referenced documents incorporated herein by reference.

One particular feature of this camera is the instant production of personalised postcards using an inbuilt printhead. This requires a media cartridge that holds a reasonable amount of print media while remaining compact enough to keep the overall dimensions of the camera and cartridge acceptable to users.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention provides a media cartridge for supplying print media to a printhead, the cartridge comprising:

a roll of print media;

a casing with a rotatable core for supporting the media roll;

an ink supply within the core;

at least one ink outlet at one end of the core for establishing fluid communication between the ink supply and the printhead;

a drive roller assembly for engaging an external drive to feed the print media to the printhead; wherein,

the longitudinal axes of the core, and rollers of the drive roller assembly are parallel.

A media cartridge adopting this design is particularly compact, has a high media and ink capacity and relatively cost effective to manufacture. The majority of the components can be made from injection molded plastics and snap fitted together.

In some embodiments, the core is segmented with different coloured inks stored in each of the segments, wherein each of the segments has a respective ink outlet in the end of the core.

Preferably, the drive roller assembly comprises at least one media de-curling roller; such that, as the media is fed to the printhead, it wraps around a portion of the at least one de-curling roller to remove residual curl caused by storage as a roll.

Providing the media in a roll allows the cartridge to be small and compact. However, the curl imparted to the media from being stored as a roll can interfere with printing when the media substrate passes the printhead. Using a de-curling roller within the drive rollers can straighten the media enough for flat engagement with the platen opposite the printhead.

The invention will be described with respect to its use with a digital camera with an inbuilt printhead. However, it will be appreciated that this is merely illustrative and the invention has clear application in many other fields.

Preferably, the cartridge has one de-curling roller and two pinch rollers, wherein the pinch rollers maintain the media substrate wrapped around the required portion of the de-curling roller. In a further preferred form, one of the pinch rollers is driven. In some forms, the driven pinch roller has a geared axle that extends beyond the casing for engagement with an external drive source via a corresponding gear.

Preferably, and an outer cover enclosing the roll and the drive roller assembly, the outer cover comprising two interengaging side moldings that snap lock together to form a media outlet slot adjacent the drive roller assembly. Preferably, one side of the slot has a resilient guide extending away from the slot for resilient engagement with a paper path leading to the printhead upon installation of the cartridge. In particular embodiments, the printhead is controlled by an image processor and the cartridge further comprises an authentication chip for confirming the suitability of the ink and the media to the image processor.

In a particularly preferred form, the cartridge is configured for engagement with a cartridge interface such that the ink outlets establish fluid communication with the printhead, the image processor accesses the authentication chip, the geared axle of the drive roller engages the external drive and the resilient guide extending from the outlet slot engages the paper feed path, in a single installation action.

According to a related aspect, there is provided a digital camera for use with a media cartridge comprising a supply of media substrate on which images can be printed, and an information store with information relating to the media substrate, the camera comprising:

an image sensor for capturing an image;

an image processor for processing image data from the image sensor and transmitting processed data to a printhead; and,

a cartridge interface for accessing the information such that the image processor can utilise the information relating to the media substrate.

The camera accesses information about the media substrate so that the image processor can utilise the information to enhance the quality of the printed image.

Preferably, the media substrate has postcard formatting printed on its reverse surface so that the camera can produce personalised postcards, and the information store has the dimensions of the postcard formatting to allow the image processor to align printed images with the postcard formatting.

In a further preferred form the cartridge further comprises an ink supply for the printhead and the information store is an authentication chip that allows the image processor to confirm that the media substrate and the ink supply is suitable for use with the camera.

According to a related aspect, there is provided a digital camera for sensing and storing an image, the camera comprising:

an image sensor with a charge coupled device (CCD) for capturing image data relating to a sensed image, and an auto exposure setting for adjusting the image data captured by the CCD in response to the lighting conditions at image capture; and,

an image processor for processing image data from the CCD and storing the processed data; wherein,

the image processor is adapted to use information from the auto exposure setting relating to the lighting conditions at image capture when processing the image data from the CCD.

Utilising the auto exposure setting to determine an advantageous re-mapping of colours within the image allows the processor to produce an amended image having colours within an image transformed to account of the auto exposure setting. The processing can comprise re-mapping image colours so they appear deeper and richer when the exposure setting indicates low light conditions and re-mapping image colours to be brighter and more saturated when the auto exposure setting indicates bright light conditions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of the present invention, preferred forms of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings which:

FIG. 1 illustrates the method of operation of the preferred embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates a form of print roll ready for purchase by a consumer;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view, partly in section, of an alternative form of a print roll;

FIG. 4 is a left side exploded perspective view of the print roll of FIG. 3; and,

FIG. 5 is a right side exploded perspective view of a single print roll.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED AND OTHER EMBODIMENTS

The preferred embodiment is preferable implemented through suitable programming of a hand held camera device such as that described in the present applicant's application entitled “A Digital Image Printing Camera with Image Processing Capability”, the content of which is hereby specifically incorporated by cross reference and the details of which, and other related applications are set out in the tables below.

The aforementioned patent specification discloses a camera system, hereinafter known as an “Artcam” type camera, wherein sensed images can be directly printed out by an Artcam portable camera unit. Further, the aforementioned specification discloses means and methods for performing various manipulations on images captured by the camera sensing device leading to the production of various effects in any output image. The manipulations are disclosed to be highly flexible in nature and can be implemented through the insertion into the Artcam of cards having encoded thereon various instructions for the manipulation of images, the cards hereinafter being known as Artcards. The Artcam further has significant onboard processing power by an Artcam Central Processor unit (ACP) which is interconnected to a memory device for the storage of important data and images.

In the preferred embodiment, the Artcam has an auto exposure sensor for determining the light level associated with the captured image. This auto exposure sensor is utilised to process the image in accordance with the set light value so as to enhance portions of the image.

Preferably, the area image sensor includes a means for determining the light conditions when capturing an image. The area image sensor adjusts the dynamic range of values captured by the CCD in accordance with the detected level sensor. The captured image is transferred to the Artcam central processor and stored in the memory store. Intensity information, as determined by the area image sensor, is also forwarded to the ACP. This information is utilised by the Artcam central processor to manipulate the stored image to enhance certain effects.

Turning now to FIG. 1, the auto exposure setting information 1 is utilised in conjunction with the stored image 2 to process the image by utilising the ACP. The processed image is returned to the memory store for later printing out 4 on the output printer.

A number of processing steps can be undertaken in accordance with the determined light conditions. Where the auto exposure setting 1 indicates that the image was taken in a low light condition, the image pixel colours are selectively re-mapped so as to make the image colours stronger, deeper and richer.

Where the auto exposure information indicates that highlight conditions were present when the image was taken, the image colours can be processed to make them brighter and more saturated. The re-colouring of the image can be undertaken by conversion of the image to a hue-saturation-value (HSV) format and an alteration of pixel values in accordance with requirements. The pixel values can then be output converted to the required output colour format of printing.

Of course, many different re-colouring techniques may be utilised. Preferably, the techniques are clearly illustrated on the pre-requisite Artcard inserted into the reader. Alternatively, the image processing algorithms can be automatically applied and hard-wired into the camera for utilization in certain conditions.

Alternatively, the Artcard inserted could have a number of manipulations applied to the image which are specific to the auto-exposure setting. For example, clip arts containing candles etc could be inserted in a dark image and large suns inserted in bright images.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 to 5, the Artcam prints the images onto media stored in a replaceable print roll 5. In some preferred embodiments, the operation of the camera device is such that when a series of images is printed on a first surface of the print roll, the corresponding backing surface has a ready made postcard which can be immediately dispatched at the nearest post office box within the jurisdiction. In this way, personalized postcards can be created.

It would be evident that when utilising the postcard system as illustrated FIG. 2 only predetermined image sizes are possible as the synchronization between the backing postcard portion and the front image must be maintained. This can be achieved by utilising the memory portions of the authentication chip stored within the print roll 5 to store details of the length of each postcard backing format sheet. This can be achieved by either having each postcard the same size or by storing each size within the print rolls on-board print chip memory.

In an alternative embodiment, there is provided a modified form of print roll which can be constructed mostly from injection moulded plastic pieces suitably snapped fitted together. The modified form of print roll has a high ink storage capacity in addition to a somewhat simplified construction. The print media onto which the image is to be printed is wrapped around a plastic sleeve former for simplified construction. The ink media reservoir has a series of air vents which are constructed so as to minimise the opportunities for the ink flow out of the air vents. Further, a rubber seal is provided for the ink outlet holes with the rubber seal being pierced on insertion of the print roll into a camera system. Further, the print roll includes a print media ejection slot and the ejection slot includes a surrounding moulded surface which provides and assists in the accurate positioning of the print media ejection slot relative to the printhead within the printing or camera system.

Turning to FIG. 3 there is illustrated a single point roll unit 5 in an assembled form with a partial cutaway showing internal portions of the print roll. FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 illustrate left and right side exploded perspective views respectively. The print roll 5 is constructed around the internal core portion 6 which contains an internal ink supply. Outside of the core portion 6 is provided a former 7 around which is wrapped a paper or film supply 8. Around the paper supply it is constructed two cover pieces 9, 10 which snap together around the print roll so as to form a covering unit as illustrated in FIG. 3. The bottom cover piece 10 includes a slot 11 through which the output of the print media 12 for interconnection with the camera system.

Two pinch rollers 13, 14 are provided to pinch the paper against a drive pinch roller 15 so they together provide for a decurling of the paper around the roller 15. The decurling acts to negate the strong curl that may be imparted to the paper from being stored in the form of print roll for an extended period of time. The rollers 13, 14 are provided to form a snap fit with end portions of the cover base portion 10 and the roller 15 which includes a cogged end 16 for driving, snap fits into the upper cover piece 9 so as to pinch the paper 12 firmly between.

The cover pieces 9, 10 includes an end protuberance or lip 17. The end lip 17 is provided for accurate alignment of the exit hole of the paper with a corresponding printing heat platen structure within the camera system. In this way, accurate alignment or positioning of the exiting paper relative to an adjacent printhead is provided for full guidance of the paper to the printhead.

It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the present invention as shown in the specific embodiment without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive.

The present invention is best utilized in the Artcam device, the details of which are set out in the following paragraphs.

Ink Jet Technologies

The embodiments of the invention use an ink jet printer type device. Of course many different devices could be used. However presently popular ink jet printing technologies are unlikely to be suitable.

The most significant problem with thermal inkjet is power consumption. This is approximately 100 times that required for high speed, and stems from the energy-inefficient means of drop ejection. This involves the rapid boiling of water to produce a vapor bubble which expels the ink. Water has a very high heat capacity, and must be superheated in thermal inkjet applications. This leads to an efficiency of around 0.02%, from electricity input to drop momentum (and increased surface area) out.

The most significant problem with piezoelectric inkjet is size and cost. Piezoelectric crystals have a very small deflection at reasonable drive voltages, and therefore require a large area for each nozzle. Also, each piezoelectric actuator must be connected to its drive circuit on a separate substrate. This is not a significant problem at the current limit of around 300 nozzles per print head, but is a major impediment to the fabrication of pagewide print heads with 19,200 nozzles.

Ideally, the inkjet technologies used meet the stringent requirements of in-camera digital color printing and other high quality, high speed, low cost printing applications. To meet the requirements of digital photography, new inkjet technologies have been created. The target features include:

low power (less than 10 Watts)

high resolution capability (1,600 dpi or more)

photographic quality output

low manufacturing cost

small size (pagewidth times minimum cross section)

high speed (<2 seconds per page).

All of these features can be met or exceeded by the inkjet systems described below with differing levels of difficulty. 45 different inkjet technologies have been developed by the Assignee to give a wide range of choices for high volume manufacture. These technologies form part of separate applications assigned to the present Assignee as set out in the table below.

The inkjet designs shown here are suitable for a wide range of digital printing systems, from battery powered one-time use digital cameras, through to desktop and network printers, and through to commercial printing systems For ease of manufacture using standard process equipment, the print head is designed to be a monolithic 0.5 micron CMOS chip with MEMS post processing. For color photographic applications, the print head is 100 mm long, with a width which depends upon the inkjet type. The smallest print head designed is IJ38, which is 0.35 mm wide, giving a chip area of 35 square mm. The print heads each contain 19,200 nozzles plus data and control circuitry.

Ink is supplied to the back of the print head by injection molded plastic ink channels. The molding requires 50 micron features, which can be created using a lithographically micromachined insert in a standard injection molding tool. Ink flows through holes etched through the wafer to the nozzle chambers fabricated on the front surface of the wafer. The print head is connected to the camera circuitry by tape automated bonding.

Cross-Referenced Applications

The following table is a guide to cross-referenced patent applications filed concurrently herewith and discussed hereinafter with the reference being utilized in subsequent tables when referring to a particular case:

Docket No. Reference Title IJ01US 6227652 Radiant Plunger Ink Jet Printer IJ02US 6213588 Electrostatic Ink Jet Printer IJ03US 6213589 Planar Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Ink Jet IJ04US 6231163 Stacked Electrostatic Ink Jet Printer IJ05US 6247795 Reverse Spring Lever Ink Jet Printer IJ06US 6394581 Paddle Type Ink Jet Printer IJ07US 6244691 Permanent Magnet Electromagnetic Ink Jet Printer IJ08US 6257704 Planar Swing Grill Electromagnetic Ink Jet Printer IJ09US 6416168 Pump Action Refill Ink Jet Printer IJ10US 6220694 Pulsed Magnetic Field Ink Jet Printer IJ11US 6257705 Two Plate Reverse Firing Electromagnetic Ink Jet Printer IJ12US 6247794 Linear Stepper Actuator Ink Jet Printer IJ13US 6234610 Gear Driven Shutter Ink Jet Printer IJ14US 6247793 Tapered Magnetic Pole Electromagnetic Ink Jet Printer IJ15US 6264306 Linear Spring Electromagnetic Grill Ink Jet Printer IJ16US 6241342 Lorenz Diaphragm Electromagnetic Ink Jet Printer IJ17US 6247792 PTFE Surface Shooting Shuttered Oscillating Pressure Ink Jet Printer IJ18US 6264307 Buckle Grip Oscillating Pressure Ink Jet Printer IJ19US 6254220 Shutter Based Ink Jet Printer IJ20US 6234611 Curling Calyx Thermoelastic Ink Jet Printer IJ21US 6302528 Thermal Actuated Ink Jet Printer IJ22US 6283582 Iris Motion Ink Jet Printer IJ23US 6239821 Direct Firing Thermal Bend Actuator Ink Jet Printer IJ24US 6338547 Conductive PTFE Ben Activator Vented Ink Jet Printer IJ25US 6247796 Magnetostrictive Ink Jet Printer IJ26US 6557977 Shape Memory Alloy Ink Jet Printer IJ27US 6390603 Buckle Plate Ink Jet Printer IJ28US 6362843 Thermal Elastic Rotary Impeller Ink Jet Printer IJ29US 6293653 Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Ink Jet Printer IJ30US 6312107 Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Using PTFE and Corrugated Copper Ink Jet Printer IJ31US 6227653 Bend Actuator Direct Ink Supply Ink Jet Printer IJ32US 6234609 A High Young's Modulus Thermoelastic Ink Jet Printer IJ33US 6238040 Thermally actuated slotted chamber wall ink jet printer IJ34US 6188415 Ink Jet Printer having a thermal actuator comprising an external coiled spring IJ35US 6227654 Trough Container Ink Jet Printer IJ36US 6209989 Dual Chamber Single Vertical Actuator Ink Jet IJ37US 6247791 Dual Nozzle Single Horizontal Fulcrum Actuator Ink Jet IJ38US 6336710 Dual Nozzle Single Horizontal Actuator Ink Jet IJ39US 6217153 A single bend actuator cupped paddle ink jet printing device IJ40US 6416167 A thermally actuated ink jet printer having a series of thermal actuator units IJ41US 6243113 A thermally actuated ink jet printer including a tapered heater element IJ42US 6283581 Radial Back-Curling Thermoelastic Ink Jet IJ43US 6247790 Inverted Radial Back-Curling Thermoelastic Ink Jet IJ44US 6260953 Surface bend actuator vented ink supply ink jet printer IJ45US 6267469 Coil Acutuated Magnetic Plate Ink Jet Printer

Tables of Drop-on-Demand Inkjets

Eleven important characteristics of the fundamental operation of individual inkjet nozzles have been identified. These characteristics are largely orthogonal, and so can be elucidated as an eleven dimensional matrix. Most of the eleven axes of this matrix include entries developed by the present assignee.

The following tables form the axes of an eleven dimensional table of inkjet types.

Actuator mechanism (18 types)

Basic operation mode (7 types)

Auxiliary mechanism (8 types)

Actuator amplification or modification method (17 types)

Actuator motion (19 types)

Nozzle refill method (4 types)

Method of restricting back-flow through inlet (10 types)

Nozzle clearing method (9 types)

Nozzle plate construction (9 types)

Drop ejection direction (5 types)

Ink type (7 types)

The complete eleven dimensional table represented by these axes contains 36.9 billion possible configurations of inkjet nozzle. While not all of the possible combinations result in a viable inkjet technology, many million configurations are viable. It is clearly impractical to elucidate all of the possible configurations. Instead, certain inkjet types have been investigated in detail. These are designated IJ01 to IJ45 above.

Other inkjet configurations can readily be derived from these 45 examples by substituting alternative configurations along one or more of the 11 axes. Most of the IJ01 to IJ45 examples can be made into inkjet print heads with characteristics superior to any currently available inkjet technology.

Where there are prior art examples known to the inventor, one or more of these examples are listed in the examples column of the tables below. The IJ01 to IJ45 series are also listed in the examples column. In some cases, a printer may be listed more than once in a table, where it shares characteristics with more than one entry.

Suitable applications include: Home printers, Office network printers, Short run digital printers, Commercial print systems, Fabric printers, Pocket printers, Internet WWW printers, Video printers, Medical imaging, Wide format printers, Notebook PC printers, Fax machines, Industrial printing systems, Photocopiers, Photographic minilabs etc.

The information associated with the aforementioned 11 dimensional matrix are set out in the following tables.

ACTUATOR MECHANISM (APPLIED ONLY TO SELECTED INK DROPS) Actuator Mechanism Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Thermal An electrothermal heater heats the Large force generated High power Canon Bubblejet bubble ink to above boiling point, Simple construction Ink carrier limited to water 1979 Endo et al GB transferring significant heat to the No moving parts Low efficiency patent 2,007,162 aqueous ink. A bubble nucleates Fast operation High temperatures required Xerox heater-in-pit and quickly forms, expelling the Small chip area required for High mechanical stress 1990 Hawkins et al ink. actuator Unusual materials required U.S. Pat. No. The efficiency of the process is Large drive transistors 4,899,181 Hewlett- low, with typically less than Cavitation causes actuator failure Packard TIJ 1982 0.05% of the electrical energy Kogation reduces bubble formation Vaught et al U.S. being transformed into kinetic Large print heads are difficult to Pat. No. 4,490,728 energy of the drop. fabricate Piezoelectric A piezoelectric crystal such as Low power consumption Very large area required for actuator Kyser et al U.S. Pat. lead lanthanum zirconate (PZT) is Many ink types can be used Difficult to integrate with electronics No. 3,946,398 electrically activated, and either Fast operation High voltage drive transistors required Zoltan U.S. Pat. No. expands, shears, or bends to apply High efficiency Full pagewidth print heads impractical 3,683,212 1973 pressure to the ink, ejecting drops. due to actuator size Stemme U.S. Pat. Requires electrical poling in high field No. 3,747,120 strengths during manufacture Epson Stylus Tektronix IJ04 Electro- An electric field is used to Low power consumption Low maximum strain (approx. 0.01%) Seiko Epson, Usui strictive activate electrostriction in relaxor Many ink types can be used Large area required for actuator due to et all JP 253401/96 materials such as lead lanthanum Low thermal expansion low strain IJ04 zirconate titanate (PLZT) or lead Electric field strength Response speed is marginal (~10 μs) magnesium niobate (PMN). required (approx. 3.5 V/μm) High voltage drive transistors required can be generated Full pagewidth print heads impractical without difficulty due to actuator size Does not require electrical poling Ferroelectric An electric field is used to induce Low power consumption Difficult to integrate with electronics IJ04 a phase transition between the Many ink types can be used Unusual materials such as PLZSnT are antiferroelectric (AFE) and Fast operation (<1 μs) required ferroelectric (FE) phase. Relatively high longitudinal Actuators require a large area Perovskite materials such as tin strain modified lead lanthanum High efficiency zirconate titanate (PLZSnT) Electric field strength of exhibit large strains of up to 1% around 3 V/μm can be associated with the AFE to FE readily provided phase transition. Electrostatic Conductive plates are separated Low power consumption Difficult to operate electrostatic IJ02, IJ04 plates by a compressible or fluid Many ink types can be used devices in an aqueous environment dielectric (usually air). Upon Fast operation The electrostatic actuator will application of a voltage, the plates normally need to be separated from attract each other and displace the ink ink, causing drop ejection. The Very large area required to achieve conductive plates may be in a high forces comb or honeycomb structure, or High voltage drive transistors may be stacked to increase the surface required area and therefore the force. Full pagewidth print heads are not competitive due to actuator size Electrostatic A strong electric field is applied Low current consumption High voltage required 1989 Saito et al, pull on ink to the ink, whereupon electrostatic Low temperature May be damaged by sparks due to air U.S. Pat. No. attraction accelerates the ink breakdown 4,799,068 1989 towards the print medium. Required field strength increases as Miura et al, U.S. the drop size decreases Pat. No. 4,810,954 High voltage drive transistors required Tone-jet Electrostatic field attracts dust Permanent An electromagnet directly attracts Low power consumption Complex fabrication IJ07, IJ10 magnet a permanent magnet, displacing Many ink types can be used Permanent magnetic material such as electromagnetic ink and causing drop ejection. Fast operation Neodymium Iron Boron (NdFeB) Rare earth magnets with a field High efficiency required. strength around 1 Tesla can be Easy extension from single High local currents required used. Examples are: Samarium nozzles to pagewidth Copper metalization should be used Cobalt (SaCo) and magnetic print heads for long electromigration lifetime materials in the neodymium iron and low resistivity boron family (NdFeB, Pigmented inks are usually infeasible NdDyFeBNb, NdDyFeB, etc) Operating temperature limited to the Curie temperature (around 540 K) Soft magnetic A solenoid induced a magnetic Low power consumption Complex fabrication IJ01, IJ05, IJ08, core electromagnetic field in a soft magnetic core or Many ink types can be used Materials not usually present in a IJ10 IJ12, IJ14, yoke fabricated from a ferrous Fast operation CMOS fab such as NiFe, CoNiFe, IJ15, IJ17 material such as electroplated iron High efficiency or CoFe are required alloys such as CoNiFe [1], CoFe, Easy extension from single High local currents required or NiFe alloys. Typically, the soft nozzles to pagewidth Copper metalization should be used magnetic material is in two parts, print heads for long electromigration lifetime which are normally held apart by and low resistivity a spring. When the solenoid is Electroplating is required actuated, the two parts attract, High saturation flux density is displacing the ink. required (2.0-2.1 T is achievable with CoNiFe [1]) Magnetic The Lorenz force acting on a Low power consumption Force acts as a twisting motion IJ06, IJ11, IJ13, Lorenz force current carrying wire in a Many ink types can be used Typically, only a quarter of the IJ16 magnetic field is utilized. Fast operation solenoid length provides force in a This allows the magnetic field to High efficiency useful direction be supplied externally to the print Easy extension from single High local currents required head, for example with rare earth nozzles to pagewidth Copper metalization should be used permanent magnets. print heads for long electromigration lifetime Only the current carrying wire and low resistivity need be fabricated on the print- Pigmented inks are usually infeasible head, simplifying materials requirements. Magnetostriction The actuator uses the giant Many ink types can be used Force acts as a twisting motion Fischenbeck, U.S. magnetostrictive effect of Fast operation Unusual materials such as Terfenol-D Pat. No. 4,032,929 materials such as Terfenol-D (an Easy extension from single are required IJ25 alloy of terbium, dysprosium and nozzles to pagewidth High local currents required iron developed at the Naval print heads Copper metalization should be used Ordnance Laboratory, hence Ter- High force is available for long electromigration lifetime Fe-NOL). For best efficiency, the and low resistivity actuator should be pre-stressed to Pre-stressing may be required approx. 8 MPa. Surface Ink under positive pressure is held Low power consumption Requires supplementary force to effect Silverbrook, EP tension in a nozzle by surface tension. Simple construction drop separation 0771 658 A2 and reduction The surface tension of the ink is No unusual materials Requires special ink surfactants related patent reduced below the bubble required in fabrication Speed may be limited by surfactant applications threshold, causing the ink to High efficiency properties egress from the nozzle. Easy extension from single nozzles to pagewidth print heads Viscosity The ink viscosity is locally Simple construction Requires supplementary force to effect Silverbrook, EP reduction reduced to select which drops are No unusual materials drop separation 0771 658 A2 and to be ejected. A viscosity required in fabrication Requires special ink viscosity related patent reduction can be achieved Easy extension from single properties applications electrothermally with most inks, nozzles to pagewidth High speed is difficult to achieve but special inks can be engineered print heads Requires oscillating ink pressure for a 100:1 viscosity reduction. A high temperature difference (typically 80 degrees) is required Acoustic An acoustic wave is generated and Can operate without a Complex drive circuitry 1993 Hadimioglu et focussed upon the drop ejection nozzle plate Complex fabrication al, EUP 550,192 region. Low efficiency 1993 Elrod et al, Poor control of drop position EUP 572,220 Poor control of drop volume Thermoelastic An actuator which relies upon Low power consumption Efficient aqueous operation requires a IJ03, IJ09, IJ17, bend differential thermal expansion Many ink types can be used thermal insulator on the hot side IJ18 IJ19, IJ20, actuator upon Joule heating is used. Simple planar fabrication Corrosion prevention can be difficult IJ21, IJ22 IJ23, Small chip area required for Pigmented inks may be infeasible, as IJ24, IJ27, IJ28 each actuator pigment particles may jam the bend IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, Fast operation actuator IJ32 IJ33, IJ34, High efficiency IJ35, IJ36 IJ37, CMOS compatible voltages IJ38, IJ39, IJ40 and currents IJ41 Standard MEMS processes can be used Easy extension from single nozzles to pagewidth print heads High CTE A material with a very high High force can be generated Requires special material (e.g. PTFE) IJ09, IJ17, IJ18, thermoelastic coefficient of thermal expansion PTFE is a candidate for low Requires a PTFE deposition process, IJ20 IJ21, IJ22, actuator (CTE) such as dielectric constant which is not yet standard in ULSI IJ23, IJ24 IJ27, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is insulation in ULSI fabs IJ28, IJ29, IJ30 used. As high CTE materials are Very low power PTFE deposition cannot be followed IJ31, IJ42, IJ43, usually non-conductive, a heater consumption with high temperature (above 350° C.) IJ44 fabricated from a conductive Many ink types can be used processing material is incorporated. A 50 μm Simple planar fabrication Pigmented inks may be infeasible, as long PTFE bend actuator with Small chip area required for pigment particles may jam the bend polysilicon heater and 15 mW each actuator actuator power input can provide 180 μN Fast operation force and 10 μm deflection. High efficiency Actuator motions include: CMOS compatible voltages 1) Bend and currents 2) Push Easy extension from single 3) Buckle nozzles to pagewidth 4) Rotate print heads Conductive A polymer with a high coefficient High force can be generated Requires special materials IJ24 polymer of thermal expansion (such as Very low power development (High CTE conductive thermoelastic PTFE) is doped with conducting consumption polymer) actuator substances to increase its Many ink types can be used Requires a PTFE deposition process, conductivity to about 3 orders of Simple planar fabrication which is not yet standard in ULSI magnitude below that of copper. Small chip area required for fabs The conducting polymer expands each actuator PTFE deposition cannot be followed when resistively heated. Fast operation with high temperature (above 350° C.) Examples of conducting dopants High efficiency processing include: CMOS compatible voltages Evaporation and CVD deposition 1) Carbon nanotubes and currents techniques cannot be used 2) Metal fibers Easy extension from single Pigmented inks may be infeasible, as 3) Conductive polymers such as nozzles to pagewidth pigment particles may jam the bend doped polythiophene print heads actuator 4) Carbon granules Shape A shape memory alloy such as High force is available Fatigue limits maximum number of IJ26 memory alloy TiNi (also known as Nitinol - (stresses of hundreds of cycles Nickel Titanium alloy developed MPa) Low strain (1%) is required to extend at the Naval Ordnance Large strain is available fatigue resistance Laboratory) is thermally switched (more than 3%) Cycle rate limited by heat removal between its weak martensitic state High corrosion resistance Requires unusual materials (TiNi) and its high stiffness austenic Simple construction The latent heat of transformation must state. The shape of the actuator in Easy extension from single be provided its martensitic state is deformed nozzles to pagewidth High current operation relative to the austenic shape. The print heads Requires pre-stressing to distort the shape change causes ejection of a Low voltage operation martensitic state drop. Linear Linear magnetic actuators include Linear Magnetic actuators Requires unusual semiconductor IJ12 Magnetic the Linear Induction Actuator can be constructed with materials such as soft magnetic Actuator (LIA), Linear Permanent Magnet high thrust, long travel, alloys (e.g. CoNiFe [1]) Synchronous Actuator (LPMSA), and high efficiency using Some varieties also require permanent Linear Reluctance Synchronous planar semiconductor magnetic materials such as Actuator (LRSA), Linear fabrication techniques Neodymium iron boron (NdFeB) Switched Reluctance Actuator Long actuator travel is Requires complex multi-phase drive (LSRA), and the Linear Stepper available circuitry Actuator (LSA). Medium force is available High current operation Low voltage operation

BASIC OPERATION MODE Operational mode Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Actuator directly This is the simplest mode of Simple operation Drop repetition rate is usually limited Thermal inkjet pushes ink operation: the actuator directly No external fields required to less than 10 KHz. However, this Piezoelectric inkjet supplies sufficient kinetic energy Satellite drops can be is not fundamental to the method, IJ01, IJ02, IJ03, IJ04 to expel the drop. The drop must avoided if drop velocity is but is related to the refill method IJ05, IJ06, IJ07, IJ09 have a sufficient velocity to less than 4 m/s normally used IJ11, IJ12, IJ14, IJ16 overcome the surface tension. Can be efficient, depending All of the drop kinetic energy must be IJ20, IJ22, IJ23, IJ24 upon the actuator used provided by the actuator IJ25, IJ26, IJ27, IJ28 Satellite drops usually form if drop IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, IJ32 velocity is greater than 4.5 m/s IJ33, IJ34, IJ35, IJ36 IJ37, IJ38, IJ39, IJ40 IJ41, IJ42, IJ43, IJ44 Proximity The drops to be printed are Very simple print head Requires close proximity between the Silverbrook, EP 0771 selected by some manner (e.g. fabrication can be used print head and the print media or 658 A2 and related thermally induced surface tension The drop selection means transfer roller patent applications reduction of pressurized ink). does not need to provide May require two print heads printing Selected drops are separated from the energy required to alternate rows of the image the ink in the nozzle by contact separate the drop from the Monolithic color print heads are with the print medium or a nozzle difficult transfer roller. Electrostatic pull on The drops to be printed are Very simple print head Requires very high electrostatic field Silverbrook, EP 0771 ink selected by some manner (e.g. fabrication can be used Electrostatic field for small nozzle 658 A2 and related thermally induced surface tension The drop selection means sizes is above air breakdown patent applications reduction of pressurized ink). does not need to provide Electrostatic field may attract dust Tone-Jet Selected drops are separated from the energy required to the ink in the nozzle by a strong separate the drop from the electric field. nozzle Magnetic pull The drops to be printed are Very simple print head Requires magnetic ink Silverbrook, EP 0771 on ink selected by some manner (e.g. fabrication can be used Ink colors other than black are 658 A2 and related thermally induced surface tension The drop selection means difficult patent applications reduction of pressurized ink). does not need to provide Requires very high magnetic fields Selected drops are separated from the energy required to the ink in the nozzle by a strong separate the drop from the magnetic field acting on the nozzle magnetic ink. Shutter The actuator moves a shutter to High speed (>50 KHz) Moving parts are required IJ13, IJ17, IJ21 block ink flow to the nozzle. The operation can be achieved Requires ink pressure modulator ink pressure is pulsed at a due to reduced refill time Friction and wear must be considered multiple of the drop ejection Drop timing can be very Stiction is possible frequency. accurate The actuator energy can be very low Shuttered The actuator moves a shutter to Actuators with small travel Moving parts are required IJ08, IJ15, IJ18, IJ19 grill block ink flow through a grill to can be used Requires ink pressure modulator the nozzle. The shutter movement Actuators with small force Friction and wear must be considered need only be equal to the width of can be used Stiction is possible the grill holes. High speed (>50 KHz) operation can be achieved Pulsed A pulsed magnetic field attracts Extremely low energy Requires an external pulsed magnetic IJ10 magnetic pull an ‘ink pusher’ at the drop operation is possible field on ink pusher ejection frequency. An actuator No heat dissipation Requires special materials for both the controls a catch, which prevents problems actuator and the ink pusher the ink pusher from moving when Complex construction a drop is not to be ejected.

AUXILIARY MECHANISM (APPLIED TO ALL NOZZLES) Auxiliary Mechanism Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples None The actuator directly fires the ink Simplicity of construction Drop ejection energy must be supplied Most inkjets, drop, and there is no external field Simplicity of operation by individual nozzle actuator including or other mechanism required. Small physical size piezoelectric and thermal bubble. IJ01-IJ07, IJ09, IJ11 IJ12, IJ14, IJ20, IJ22 IJ23-IJ45 Oscillating ink The ink pressure oscillates, Oscillating ink pressure can Requires external ink pressure Silverbrook, EP 0771 pressure providing much of the drop provide a refill pulse, oscillator 658 A2 and related (including ejection energy. The actuator allowing higher operating Ink pressure phase and amplitude must patent applications acoustic selects which drops are to be fired speed be carefully controlled IJ08, IJ13, IJ15, IJ17 stimulation) by selectively blocking or The actuators may operate Acoustic reflections in the ink IJ18, IJ19, IJ21 enabling nozzles. The ink pressure with much lower energy chamber must be designed for oscillation may be achieved by Acoustic lenses can be used vibrating the print head, or to focus the sound on the preferably by an actuator in the nozzles ink supply. Media The print head is placed in close Low power Precision assembly required Silverbrook, EP 0771 proximity proximity to the print medium. High accuracy Paper fibers may cause problems 658 A2 and related Selected drops protrude from the Simple print head Cannot print on rough substrates patent applications print head further than unselected construction drops, and contact the print medium. The drop soaks into the medium fast enough to cause drop separation. Transfer Drops are printed to a transfer High accuracy Bulky Silverbrook, EP 0771 roller roller instead of straight to the Wide range of print Expensive 658 A2 and related print medium. A transfer roller substrates can be used Complex construction patent applications can also be used for proximity Ink can be dried on the Tektronix hot melt drop separation. transfer roller piezoelectric inkjet Any of the IJ series Electrostatic An electric field is used to Low power Field strength required for separation Silverbrook, EP 0771 accelerate selected drops towards Simple print head of small drops is near or above air 658 A2 and related the print medium. construction breakdown patent applications Tone-Jet Direct A magnetic field is used to Low power Requires magnetic ink Silverbrook, EP 0771 magnetic accelerate selected drops of Simple print head Requires strong magnetic field 658 A2 and related field magnetic ink towards the print construction patent applications medium. Cross The print head is placed in a Does not require magnetic Requires external magnet IJ06, IJ16 magnetic constant magnetic field. The materials to be integrated Current densities may be high, field Lorenz force in a current carrying in the print head resulting in electromigration wire is used to move the actuator. manufacturing process problems Pulsed magnetic A pulsed magnetic field is used to Very low power operation is Complex print head construction IJ10 field cyclically attract a paddle, which possible Magnetic materials required in print pushes on the ink. A small Small print head size head actuator moves a catch, which selectively prevents the paddle from moving.

ACTUATOR AMPLIFICATION OR MODIFICATION METHOD Actuator amplification Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples None No actuator mechanical Operational simplicity Many actuator mechanisms have Thermal Bubble Inkjet amplification is used. The actuator insufficient travel, or insufficient IJ01, IJ02, IJ06, IJ07 directly drives the drop ejection force, to efficiently drive the drop IJ16, IJ25, IJ26 process. ejection process Differential An actuator material expands Provides greater travel in a High stresses are involved Piezoelectric expansion more on one side than on the reduced print head area Care must be taken that the materials IJ03, IJ09, IJ17-IJ24 bend actuator other. The expansion may be The bend actuator converts do not delaminate IJ27, IJ29-IJ39, IJ42, thermal, piezoelectric, a high force low travel Residual bend resulting from high IJ43, IJ44 magnetostrictive, or other actuator mechanism to temperature or high stress during mechanism. high travel, lower force formation mechanism. Transient A trilayer bend actuator where the Very good temperature High stresses are involved IJ40, IJ41 bend actuator two outside layers are identical. stability Care must be taken that the materials This cancels bend due to ambient High speed, as a new drop do not delaminate temperature and residual stress. can be fired before heat The actuator only responds to dissipates transient heating of one side or the Cancels residual stress of other. formation Actuator A series of thin actuators are Increased travel Increased fabrication complexity Some piezoelectric stack stacked. This can be appropriate Reduced drive voltage Increased possibility of short circuits ink jets where actuators require high due to pinholes IJ04 electric field strength, such as electrostatic and piezoelectric actuators. Multiple Multiple smaller actuators are Increases the force available Actuator forces may not add linearly, IJ12, IJ13, IJ18, IJ20 actuators used simultaneously to move the from an actuator reducing efficiency IJ22, IJ28, IJ42, IJ43 ink. Each actuator need provide Multiple actuators can be only a portion of the force positioned to control ink required. flow accurately Linear Spring A linear spring is used to Matches low travel actuator Requires print head area for the spring IJ15 transform a motion with small with higher travel travel and high force into a longer requirements travel, lower force motion. Non-contact method of motion transformation Reverse The actuator loads a spring. When Better coupling to the ink Fabrication complexity IJ05, IJ11 spring the actuator is turned off, the High stress in the spring spring releases. This can reverse the force/distance curve of the actuator to make it compatible with the force/time requirements of the drop ejection. Coiled A bend actuator is coiled to Increases travel Generally restricted to planar IJ17, IJ21, IJ34, IJ35 actuator provide greater travel in a reduced Reduces chip area implementations due to extreme chip area. Planar implementations are fabrication difficulty in other relatively easy to orientations. fabricate. Flexure bend A bend actuator has a small Simple means of increasing Care must be taken not to exceed the IJ10, IJ19, IJ33 actuator region near the fixture point, travel of a bend actuator elastic limit in the flexure area which flexes much more readily Stress distribution is very uneven than the remainder of the actuator. Difficult to accurately model with The actuator flexing is effectively finite element analysis converted from an even coiling to an angular bend, resulting in greater travel of the actuator tip. Gears Gears can be used to increase Low force, low travel Moving parts are required IJ13 travel at the expense of duration. actuators can be used Several actuator cycles are required Circular gears, rack and pinion, Can be fabricated using More complex drive electronics ratchets, and other gearing standard surface MEMS Complex construction methods can be used. processes Friction, friction, and wear are possible Catch The actuator controls a small Very low actuator energy Complex construction IJ10 catch. The catch either enables or Very small actuator size Requires external force disables movement of an ink Unsuitable for pigmented inks pusher that is controlled in a bulk manner. Buckle plate A buckle plate can be used to Very fast movement Must stay within elastic limits of the S. Hirata et al, “An change a slow actuator into a fast achievable materials for long device life Ink-jet Head . . . ”, motion. It can also convert a high High stresses involved Proc. IEEE MEMS, force, low travel actuator into a Generally high power requirement February 1996, high travel, medium force motion. pp 418-423. IJ18, IJ27 Tapered A tapered magnetic pole can Linearizes the magnetic Complex construction IJ14 magnetic increase travel at the expense of force/distance curve pole force. Lever A lever and fulcrum is used to Matches low travel actuator High stress around the fulcrum IJ32, IJ36, IJ37 transform a motion with small with higher travel travel and high force into a requirements motion with longer travel and Fulcrum area has no linear lower force. The lever can also movement, and can be reverse the direction of travel. used for a fluid seal Rotary The actuator is connected to a High mechanical advantage Complex construction IJ28 impeller rotary impeller. A small angular The ratio of force to travel Unsuitable for pigmented inks deflection of the actuator results of the actuator can be in a rotation of the impeller vanes, matched to the nozzle which push the ink against requirements by varying stationary vanes and out of the the number of impeller nozzle. vanes Acoustic lens A refractive or diffractive (e.g. No moving parts Large area required 1993 Hadimioglu et zone plate) acoustic lens is used to Only relevant for acoustic ink jets al, EUP 550,192 concentrate sound waves. 1993 Elrod et al, EUP 572,220 Sharp A sharp point is used to Simple construction Difficult to fabricate using standard Tone-jet conductive concentrate an electrostatic field. VLSI processes for a surface point ejecting ink-jet Only relevant for electrostatic ink jets

ACTUATOR MOTION Actuator motion Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Volume The volume of the actuator Simple construction in the High energy is typically required to Hewlett-Packard expansion changes, pushing the ink in all case of thermal ink jet achieve volume expansion. This Thermal Inkjet directions. leads to thermal stress, cavitation, Canon Bubblejet and kogation in thermal ink jet implementations Linear, The actuator moves in a direction Efficient coupling to ink High fabrication complexity may be IJ01, IJ02, IJ04, IJ07 normal to normal to the print head surface. drops ejected normal to required to achieve perpendicular IJ11, IJ14 chip surface The nozzle is typically in the line the surface motion of movement. Linear, The actuator moves parallel to the Suitable for planar Fabrication complexity IJ12, IJ13, IJ15, IJ33, parallel to print head surface. Drop ejection fabrication Friction IJ34, IJ35, IJ36 chip surface may still be normal to the surface. Stiction Membrane An actuator with a high force but The effective area of the Fabrication complexity 1982 Howkins U.S. Pat. No. push small area is used to push a stiff actuator becomes the Actuator size 4,459,601 membrane that is in contact with membrane area Difficulty of integration in a VLSI the ink. process Rotary The actuator causes the rotation of Rotary levers may be used Device complexity IJ05, IJ08, IJ13, IJ28 some element, such a grill or to increase travel May have friction at a pivot point impeller Small chip area requirements Bend The actuator bends when A very small change in Requires the actuator to be made from 1970 Kyser et al U.S. Pat. No. energized. This may be due to dimensions can be at least two distinct layers, or to 3,946,398 differential thermal expansion, converted to a large have a thermal difference across the 1973 Stemme U.S. Pat. No. piezoelectric expansion, motion. actuator 3,747,120 magnetostriction, or other form of IJ03, IJ09, IJ10, IJ19 relative dimensional change. IJ23, IJ24, IJ25, IJ29 IJ30, IJ31, IJ33, IJ34 IJ35 Swivel The actuator swivels around a Allows operation where the Inefficient coupling to the ink motion IJ06 central pivot. This motion is net linear force on the suitable where there are opposite paddle is zero forces applied to opposite sides of Small chip area the paddle, e.g. Lorenz force. requirements Straighten The actuator is normally bent, and Can be used with shape Requires careful balance of stresses to IJ26, IJ32 straightens when energized. memory alloys where the ensure that the quiescent bend is austenic phase is planar accurate Double bend The actuator bends in one One actuator can be used to Difficult to make the drops ejected by IJ36, IJ37, IJ38 direction when one element is power two nozzles. both bend directions identical. energized, and bends the other Reduced chip size. A small efficiency loss compared to way when another element is Not sensitive to ambient equivalent single bend actuators. energized. temperature Shear Energizing the actuator causes a Can increase the effective Not readily applicable to other 1985 Fishbeck U.S. Pat. No. shear motion in the actuator travel of piezoelectric actuator mechanisms 4,584,590 material. actuators Radial The actuator squeezes an ink Relatively easy to fabricate High force required 1970 Zoltan U.S. Pat. No. constriction reservoir, forcing ink from a single nozzles from glass Inefficient 3,683,212 constricted nozzle. tubing as macroscopic Difficult to integrate with VLSI structures processes Coil/uncoil A coiled actuator uncoils or coils Easy to fabricate as a planar Difficult to fabricate for non-planar IJ17, IJ21, IJ34, IJ35 more tightly. The motion of the VLSI process devices free end of the actuator ejects the Small area required, Poor out-of-plane stiffness ink. therefore low cost Bow The actuator bows (or buckles) in Can increase the speed of Maximum travel is constrained IJ16, IJ18, IJ27 the middle when energized. travel High force required Mechanically rigid Push-Pull Two actuators control a shutter. The structure is pinned at Not readily suitable for inkjets which IJ18 One actuator pulls the shutter, and both ends, so has a high directly push the ink the other pushes it. out-of-plane rigidity Curl inwards A set of actuators curl inwards to Good fluid flow to the Design complexity IJ20, IJ42 reduce the volume of ink that they region behind the actuator enclose. increases efficiency Curl A set of actuators curl outwards, Relatively simple Relatively large chip area IJ43 outwards pressurizing ink in a chamber construction surrounding the actuators, and expelling ink from a nozzle in the chamber. Iris Multiple vanes enclose a volume High efficiency High fabrication complexity IJ22 of ink. These simultaneously Small chip area Not suitable for pigmented inks rotate, reducing the volume between the vanes. Acoustic The actuator vibrates at a high The actuator can be Large area required for efficient 1993 Hadimioglu et vibration frequency. physically distant from operation at useful frequencies al, EUP 550,192 the ink Acoustic coupling and crosstalk 1993 Elrod et al, EUP Complex drive circuitry 572,220 Poor control of drop volume and position None In various ink jet designs the No moving parts Various other tradeoffs are required to Silverbrook, EP 0771 actuator does not move. eliminate moving parts 658 A2 and related patent applications Tone-jet

NOZZLE REFILL METHOD Nozzle refill method Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Surface tension After the actuator is energized, it Fabrication simplicity Low speed Thermal inkjet typically returns rapidly to its Operational simplicity Surface tension force relatively small Piezoelectric inkjet normal position. This rapid return compared to actuator force IJ01-IJ07, IJ10-IJ14 sucks in air through the nozzle Long refill time usually dominates the IJ16, IJ20, IJ22-IJ45 opening. The ink surface tension total repetition rate at the nozzle then exerts a small force restoring the meniscus to a minimum area. Shuttered oscillating Ink to the nozzle chamber is High speed Requires common ink pressure IJ08, IJ13, IJ15, IJ17 ink pressure provided at a pressure that Low actuator energy, as the oscillator IJ18, IJ19, IJ21 oscillates at twice the drop actuator need only open May not be suitable for pigmented ejection frequency. When a drop or close the shutter, inks is to be ejected, the shutter is instead of ejecting the ink opened for 3 half cycles: drop drop ejection, actuator return, and refill. Refill After the main actuator has High speed, as the nozzle is Requires two independent actuators IJ09 actuator ejected a drop a second (refill) actively refilled per nozzle actuator is energized. The refill actuator pushes ink into the nozzle chamber. The refill actuator returns slowly, to prevent its return from emptying the chamber again. Positive ink The ink is held a slight positive High refill rate, therefore a Surface spill must be prevented Silverbrook, EP 0771 pressure pressure. After the ink drop is high drop repetition rate Highly hydrophobic print head 658 A2 and related ejected, the nozzle chamber fills is possible surfaces are required patent applications quickly as surface tension and ink Alternative for: pressure both operate to refill the IJ01-IJ07, IJ10-IJ14 nozzle. IJ16, IJ20, IJ22-IJ45

METHOD OF RESTRICTING BACK-FLOW THROUGH INLET Inlet back-flow restriction method Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Long inlet The ink inlet channel to the nozzle Design simplicity Restricts refill rate Thermal inkjet channel chamber is made long and Operational simplicity May result in a relatively large chip Piezoelectric inkjet relatively narrow, relying on Reduces crosstalk area IJ42, IJ43 viscous drag to reduce inlet back- Only partially effective flow. Positive ink pressure The ink is under a positive Drop selection and Requires a method (such as a nozzle Silverbrook, EP 0771 pressure, so that in the quiescent separation forces can be rim or effective hydrophobizing, or 658 A2 and related state some of the ink drop already reduced both) to prevent flooding of the patent applications protrudes from the nozzle. Fast refill time ejection surface of the print head. Possible operation of This reduces the pressure in the the following: nozzle chamber which is required IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ12 to eject a certain volume of ink. IJ14, IJ16, IJ20, IJ22, The reduction in chamber IJ23-IJ34, IJ36-IJ41 pressure results in a reduction in IJ44 ink pushed out through the inlet. Baffle One or more baffles are placed in The refill rate is not as Design complexity HP Thermal Ink Jet the inlet ink flow. When the restricted as the long inlet May increase fabrication complexity Tektronix actuator is energized, the rapid ink method. (e.g. Tektronix hot melt piezoelectric ink jet movement creates eddies which Reduces crosstalk Piezoelectric print heads). restrict the flow through the inlet. The slower refill process is unrestricted, and does not result in eddies. Flexible flap In this method recently disclosed Significantly reduces back- Not applicable to most inkjet Canon restricts inlet by Canon, the expanding actuator flow for edge-shooter configurations (bubble) pushes on a flexible flap thermal ink jet devices Increased fabrication complexity that restricts the inlet. Inelastic deformation of polymer flap results in creep over extended use Inlet filter A filter is located between the ink Additional advantage of ink Restricts refill rate IJ04, IJ12, IJ24, IJ27 inlet and the nozzle chamber. The filtration May result in complex construction IJ29, IJ30 filter has a multitude of small Ink filter may be fabricated holes or slots, restricting ink flow. with no additional The filter also removes particles process steps which may block the nozzle. Small inlet The ink inlet channel to the nozzle Design simplicity Restricts refill rate IJ02, IJ37, IJ44 compared to chamber has a substantially May result in a relatively large chip nozzle smaller cross section than that of area the nozzle, resulting in easier ink Only partially effective egress out of the nozzle than out of the inlet. Inlet shutter A secondary actuator controls the Increases speed of the ink- Requires separate refill actuator and IJ09 position of a shutter, closing off jet print head operation drive circuit the ink inlet when the main actuator is energized. The inlet is The method avoids the problem of Back-flow problem is Requires careful design to minimize IJ01, IJ03, IJ05, IJ06 located inlet back-flow by arranging the eliminated the negative pressure behind the IJ07, IJ10, IJ11, IJ14 behind the ink-pushing surface of the paddle IJ16, IJ22, IJ23, IJ25 ink-pushing actuator between the inlet and the IJ28, IJ31, IJ32, IJ33 surface nozzle. IJ34, IJ35, IJ36, IJ39 IJ40, IJ41 Part of the The actuator and a wall of the ink Significant reductions in Small increase in fabrication IJ07, IJ20, IJ26, IJ38 actuator chamber are arranged so that the back-flow can be complexity moves to motion of the actuator closes off achieved shut off the the inlet. Compact designs possible inlet Nozzle In some configurations of ink jet, Ink back-flow problem is None related to ink back-flow on Silverbrook, EP 0771 actuator does there is no expansion or eliminated actuation 658 A2 and related not result in ink back- movement of an actuator which patent applications flow may cause ink back-flow through Valve-jet the inlet. Tone-jet IJ08, IJ13, IJ15, IJ17 IJ18, IJ19, IJ21

NOZZLE CLEARING METHOD Nozzle Clearing method Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Normal All of the nozzles are fired No added complexity on the May not be sufficient to displace dried Most ink jet systems nozzle firing periodically, before the ink has a print head ink IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ12 chance to dry. When not in use IJ14, IJ16, IJ20, IJ22 the nozzles are sealed (capped) IJ23-IJ34, IJ36-IJ45 against air. The nozzle firing is usually performed during a special clearing cycle, after first moving the print head to a cleaning station. Extra power In systems which heat the ink, but Can be highly effective if Requires higher drive voltage for Silverbrook, EP 0771 to ink heater do not boil it under normal the heater is adjacent to clearing 658 A2 and related situations, nozzle clearing can be the nozzle May require larger drive transistors patent applications achieved by over-powering the heater and boiling ink at the nozzle. Rapid The actuator is fired in rapid Does not require extra drive Effectiveness depends substantially May be used with: succession succession. In some circuits on the print head upon the configuration of the inkjet IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ11 of actuator configurations, this may cause Can be readily controlled nozzle IJ14, IJ16, IJ20, IJ22 pulses heat build-up at the nozzle which and initiated by digital IJ23-IJ25, IJ27-IJ34 boils the ink, clearing the nozzle. logic IJ36-IJ45 In other situations, it may cause sufficient vibrations to dislodge clogged nozzles. Extra power Where an actuator is not normally A simple solution where Not suitable where there is a hard limit May be used with: to ink driven to the limit of its motion, applicable to actuator movement IJ03, IJ09, IJ16, IJ20 pushing nozzle clearing may be assisted by IJ23, IJ24, IJ25, IJ27 actuator providing an enhanced drive IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, IJ32 signal to the actuator. IJ39, IJ40, IJ41, IJ42 IJ43, IJ44, IJ45 Acoustic An ultrasonic wave is applied to A high nozzle clearing High implementation cost if system IJ08, IJ13, IJ15, IJ17 resonance the ink chamber. This wave is of capability can be does not already include an acoustic IJ18, IJ19, IJ21 an appropriate amplitude and achieved actuator frequency to cause sufficient force May be implemented at very at the nozzle to clear blockages, low cost in systems which This is easiest to achieve if the already include acoustic ultrasonic wave is at a resonant actuators frequency of the ink cavity. Nozzle A microfabricated plate is pushed Can clear severely clogged Accurate mechanical alignment is Silverbrook, EP 0771 clearing plate against the nozzles. The plate has nozzles required 658 A2 and related a post for every nozzle. The array Moving parts are required patent applications of posts There is risk of damage to the nozzles Accurate fabrication is required Ink pressure The pressure of the ink is May be effective where Requires pressure pump or other May be used with all pulse temporarily increased so that ink other methods cannot be pressure actuator IJ series ink jets streams from all of the nozzles. used Expensive This may be used in conjunction Wasteful of ink with actuator energizing. Print head A flexible ‘blade’ is wiped across Effective for planar print Difficult to use if print head surface is Many ink jet systems wiper the print head surface. The blade head surfaces non-planar or very fragile is usually fabricated from a Low cost Requires mechanical parts flexible polymer, e.g. rubber or Blade can wear out in high volume synthetic elastomer. print systems Separate ink A separate heater is provided at Can be effective where Fabrication complexity Can be used with boiling heater the nozzle although the normal other nozzle clearing many IJ series ink drop e-ection mechanism does methods cannot be used jets not require it. The heaters do not Can be implemented at no require individual drive circuits, additional cost in some as many nozzles can be cleared inkjet configurations simultaneously, and no imaging is required.

NOZZLE PLATE CONSTRUCTION Nozzle plate construction Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Electroformed A nozzle plate is separately Fabrication simplicity High temperatures and pressures are Hewlett Packard nickel fabricated from electroformed required to bond nozzle plate Thermal Inkjet nickel, and bonded to the print Minimum thickness constraints head chip. Differential thermal expansion Laser ablated Individual nozzle holes are No masks required Each hole must be individually formed Canon Bubblejet or drilled ablated by an intense UV laser in Can be quite fast Special equipment required 1988 Sercel et al., polymer a nozzle plate, which is typically a Some control over nozzle Slow where there are many thousands SPIE, Vol. 998 polymer such as polyimide or profile is possible of nozzles per print head Excimer Beam polysulphone Equipment required is May produce thin burrs at exit holes Applications, pp. relatively low cost 76-83 1993 Watanabe et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,604 Silicon A separate nozzle plate is High accuracy is Two part construction K. Bean, IEEE micromachined micromachined from single attainable High cost Transactions on crystal silicon, and bonded to the Requires precision alignment Electron Devices, print head wafer. Nozzles may be clogged by adhesive Vol. ED-25, No. 10, 1978, pp 1185-1195 Xerox 1990 Hawkins et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181 Glass Fine glass capillaries are drawn No expensive equipment Very small nozzle sizes are difficult to 1970 Zoltan U.S. Pat. No. capillaries from glass tubing. This method required form 3,683,212 has been used for making Simple to make single Not suited for mass production individual nozzles, but is difficult nozzles to use for bulk manufacturing of print heads with thousands of nozzles. Monolithic, The nozzle plate is deposited as a High accuracy (<1 μm) Requires sacrificial layer under the Silverbrook, EP 0771 surface layer using standard VLSI Monolithic nozzle plate to form the nozzle 658 A2 and related micromachined deposition techniques. Nozzles Low cost chamber patent applications using VLSI are etched in the nozzle plate Existing processes can be Surface may be fragile to the touch IJ01, IJ02, IJ04, IJ11 lithographic using VLSI lithography and used IJ12, IJ17, IJ18, IJ20 processes etching. IJ22, IJ24, IJ27, IJ28 IJ29, IJ30, IJ31, IJ32 IJ33, IJ34, IJ36, IJ37 IJ38, IJ39, IJ40, IJ41 IJ42, IJ43, IJ44 Monolithic, The nozzle plate is a buried etch High accuracy (<1 μm) Requires long etch times IJ03, IJ05, IJ06, IJ07 etched stop in the wafer. Nozzle Monolithic Requires a support wafer IJ08, IJ09, IJ10, IJ13 through chambers are etched in the front Low cost IJ14, IJ15, IJ16, IJ19 substrate of the wafer, and the wafer is No differential expansion IJ21, IJ23, IJ25, IJ26 thinned from the back side. Nozzles are then etched in the etch stop layer. No nozzle Various methods have been tried No nozzles to become Difficult to control drop position Ricoh 1995 Sekiya et plate to eliminate the nozzles entirely, clogged accurately al U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,413 to prevent nozzle clogging. These Crosstalk problems 1993 Hadimioglu et al include thermal bubble EUP 550,192 mechanisms and acoustic lens 1993 Elrod et al EUP mechanisms 572,220 Trough Each drop ejector has a trough Reduced manufacturing Drop firing direction is sensitive to IJ35 through which a paddle moves. complexity wicking. There is no nozzle plate. Monolithic Nozzle slit The elimination of nozzle holes No nozzles to become Difficult to control drop position 1989 Saito et al U.S. Pat. No. instead of and replacement by a slit clogged accurately 4,799,068 individual encompassing many actuator Crosstalk problems nozzles positions reduces nozzle clogging, but increases crosstalk due to ink surface waves

DROP EJECTION DIRECTION Ejection direction Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Edge Ink flow is along the surface of Simple construction Nozzles limited to edge Canon Bubblejet 1979 (‘edge the chip, and ink drops are ejected No silicon etching required High resolution is difficult Endo et al GB shooter’) from the chip edge. Good heat sinking via Fast color printing requires one print patent 2,007,162 substrate head per color Xerox heater-in-pit Mechanically strong 1990 Hawkins et al Ease of chip handing U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181 Tone-jet Surface Ink flow is along the surface of No bulk silicon etching Maximum ink flow is severely Hewlett-Packard TIJ (‘roof the chip, and ink drops are ejected required restricted 1982 Vaught et al shooter’) from the chip surface, normal to Silicon can make an U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,728 the plane of the chip. effective heat sink IJ02, IJ11, IJ12, IJ20 Mechanical strength IJ22 Through Ink flow is through the chip, and High ink flow Requires bulk silicon etching Silverbrook, EP 0771 chip, forward ink drops are ejected from the Suitable for pagewidth print 658 A2 and related (‘up shooter’) front surface of the chip. High nozzle packing density patent applications therefore low IJ04, IJ17, IJ18, IJ24 manufacturing cost IJ27-IJ45 Through Ink flow is through the chip, and High ink flow Requires wafer thinning IJ01, IJ03, IJ05, IJ06 chip, reverse ink drops are ejected from the rear Suitable for pagewidth print Requires special handling during IJ07, IJ08, IJ09, IJ10 (‘down surface of the chip. High nozzle packing density manufacture IJ13, IJ14, IJ15, IJ16 shooter’) therefore low IJ19, IJ21, IJ23, IJ25 manufacturing cost IJ26 Through Ink flow is through the actuator, Suitable for piezoelectric Pagewidth print heads require several Epson Stylus actuator which is not fabricated as part of print heads thousand connections to drive Tektronix hot melt the same substrate as the drive circuits piezoelectric ink transistors. Cannot be manufactured in standard jets CMOS fabs Complex assembly required

INK TYPE Ink type Description Advantages Disadvantages Examples Aqueous, dye Water based ink which typically Environmentally friendly Slow drying Most existing inkjets contains: water, dye, surfactant, No odor Corrosive All IJ series ink jets humectant, and biocide. Bleeds on paper Silverbrook, EP 0771 Modern ink dyes have high water- May strikethrough 658 A2 and related fastness, light fastness Cockles paper patent applications Aqueous, Water based ink which typically Environmentally friendly Slow drying IJ02, IJ04, IJ21, IJ26 pigment contains: water, pigment, No odor Corrosive IJ27, IJ30 surfactant, humectant, and Reduced bleed Pigment may clog nozzles Silverbrook, EP 0771 biocide. Reduced wicking Pigment may clog actuator 658 A2 and related Pigments have an advantage in Reduced strikethrough mechanisms patent applications reduced bleed, wicking and Cockles paper Piezoelectric ink-jets strikethrough. Thermal ink jets (with significant restrictions) Methyl Ethyl MEK is a highly volatile solvent Very fast drying Odorous All IJ series ink jets Ketone (MEK) used for industrial printing on Prints on various substrates Flammable difficult surfaces such as such as metals and aluminum cans. plastics Alcohol Alcohol based inks can be used Fast drying Slight odor All IJ series ink jets (ethanol, 2- where the printer must operate at Operates at sub-freezing Flammable butanol, and temperatures below the freezing temperatures others) point of water. An example of this Reduced paper cockle is in-camera consumer Low cost photographic printing. Phase The ink is solid at room No drying time-ink High viscosity Tektronix hot melt change temperature, and is melted in the instantly freezes on the Printed ink typically has a ‘waxy’ feel piezoelectric ink (hot melt) print head before jetting. Hot melt print medium Printed pages may ‘block’ jets inks are usually wax based, with a Almost any print medium Ink temperature may be above the 1989 Nowak U.S. Pat. No. melting point around 80° C. After can be used curie point of permanent magnets 4,820,346 jetting the ink freezes almost No paper cockle occurs Ink heaters consume power All IJ series ink jets instantly upon contacting the print No wicking occurs Long warm-up time medium or a transfer roller. No bleed occurs No strikethrough occurs Oil Oil based inks are extensively High solubility medium for High viscosity: this is a significant All IJ series ink jets used in offset printing. They have some dyes limitation for use in inkjets, which advantages in improved Does not cockle paper usually require a low viscosity. characteristics on paper Does not wick through Some short chain and multi- (especially no wicking or cockle). paper branched oils have a sufficiently Oil soluble dies and pigments are low viscosity. required. Slow drying Microemulsion A microemulsion is a stable, self Stops ink bleed Viscosity higher than water All IJ series ink jets forming emulsion of oil, water, High dye solubility Cost is slightly higher than water and surfactant. The characteristic Water, oil, and amphiphilic based ink drop size is less than 100 nm, and soluble dies can be used High surfactant concentration required is determined by the preferred Can stabilize pigment (around 5%) curvature of the surfactant. suspensions

Ink Jet Printing

A large number of new forms of ink jet printers have been developed to facilitate alternative ink jet technologies for the image processing and data distribution system. Various combinations of ink jet devices can be included in printer devices incorporated as part of the present invention. Australian Provisional Patent Applications relating to these ink jets which are specifically incorporated by cross reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian US Patent/Patent Provisional Application and Filing Number Filing Date Title Date PO8066 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,227,652 (IJ01) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8072 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,213,588 (IJ02) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8040 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,213,589 (IJ03) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8071 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,231,163 (IJ04) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8047 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,795 (IJ05) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8035 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,394,581 (IJ06) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8044 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,244,691 (IJ07) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8063 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,257,704 (IJ08) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8057 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,416,168 (IJ09) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8056 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,220,694 (IJ10) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8069 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,257,705 (IJ11) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8049 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,794 (IJ12) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8036 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,234,610 (IJ13) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8048 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,793 (IJ14) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8070 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,264,306 (IJ15) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8067 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,241,342 (IJ16) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8001 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,792 (IJ17) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8038 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,264,307 (IJ18) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8033 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,254,220 (IJ19) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8002 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,234,611 (IJ20) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8068 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,302,528 (IJ21) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8062 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,283,582 (IJ22) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8034 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,239,821 (IJ23) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8039 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,338,547 (IJ24) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8041 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,796 (IJ25) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8004 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 09/113,122 (IJ26) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8037 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,390,603 (IJ27) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8043 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,362,843 (IJ28) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8042 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,293,653 (IJ29) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8064 15-Jul-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,312,107 (IJ30) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9389 23-Sep-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,227,653 (IJ31) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9391 23-Sep-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,234,609 (IJ32) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0888 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,238,040 (IJ33) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0891 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,188,415 (IJ34) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0890 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,227,654 (IJ35) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0873 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,209,989 (IJ36) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0993 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,791 (IJ37) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0890 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,336,710 (IJ38) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP1398 19-Jan-98 An Image Creation Method and 6,217,153 Apparatus (IJ39) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP2592 25-Mar-98 An Image Creation Method and 6,416,167 Apparatus (IJ40) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP2593 25-Mar-98 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,243,113 (IJ41) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3991 9-Jun-98 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,283,581 (IJ42) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3987 9-Jun-98 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,247,790 (IJ43) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3985 9-Jun-98 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,260,953 (IJ44) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3983 9-Jun-98 Image Creation Method and Apparatus 6,267,469 (IJ45) (Jul. 10, 1998)

Ink Jet Manufacturing

Further, the present application may utilize advanced semiconductor fabrication techniques in the construction of large arrays of ink jet printers. Suitable manufacturing techniques are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian US Patent/Patent Provisional Filing Application and Filing Number Date Title Date PO7935 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,224,780 Creation Apparatus (IJM01) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7936 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,235,212 Creation Apparatus (IJM02) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7937 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,280,643 Creation Apparatus (IJM03) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8061 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,284,147 Creation Apparatus (IJM04) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8054 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,214,244 Creation Apparatus (IJM05) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8065 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,071,750 Creation Apparatus (IJM06) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8055 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,267,905 Creation Apparatus (IJM07) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8053 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,251,298 Creation Apparatus (IJM08) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8078 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,258,285 Creation Apparatus (IJM09) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7933 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,225,138 Creation Apparatus (IJM10) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7950 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,241,904 Creation Apparatus (IJM11) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7949 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,299,786 Creation Apparatus (IJM12) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8060 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 09/113,124 Creation Apparatus (IJM13) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8059 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,231,773 Creation Apparatus (IJM14) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8073 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,190,931 Creation Apparatus (IJM15) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8076 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,248,249 Creation Apparatus (IJM16) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8075 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,290,862 Creation Apparatus (IJM17) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8079 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,241,906 Creation Apparatus (IJM18) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8050 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 09/113,116 Creation Apparatus (IJM19) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8052 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,241,905 Creation Apparatus (IJM20) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7948 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,451,216 Creation Apparatus (IJM21) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7951 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,231,772 Creation Apparatus (IJM22) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8074 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,274,056 Creation Apparatus (IJM23) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7941 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,290,861 Creation Apparatus (IJM24) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8077 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,248,248 Creation Apparatus (IJM25) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8058 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,306,671 Creation Apparatus (IJM26) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8051 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,331,258 Creation Apparatus (IJM27) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8045 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,110,754 Creation Apparatus (IJM28) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7952 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,294,101 Creation Apparatus (IJM29) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8046 15-Jul-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,416,679 Creation Apparatus (IJM30) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8503 11-Aug-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,264,849 Creation Apparatus (IJM30a) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9390 23-Sep-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,254,793 Creation Apparatus (IJM31) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9392 23-Sep-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,235,211 Creation Apparatus (IJM32) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0889 12-Dec-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,235,211 Creation Apparatus (IJM35) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0887 12-Dec-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,264,850 Creation Apparatus (IJM36) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0882 12-Dec-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,258,284 Creation Apparatus (IJM37) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0874 12-Dec-97 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,258,284 Creation Apparatus (IJM38) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP1396 19-Jan-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,228,668 Creation Apparatus (IJM39) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP2591 25-Mar-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,180,427 Creation Apparatus (IJM41) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3989 9-Jun-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,171,875 Creation Apparatus (IJM40) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3990 9-Jun-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,267,904 Creation Apparatus (IJM42) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3986 9-Jun-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,245,247 Creation Apparatus (IJM43) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3984 9-Jun-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,245,247 Creation Apparatus (IJM44) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP3982 9-Jun-98 A Method of Manufacture of an Image 6,231,148 Creation Apparatus (IJM45) (Jul. 10, 1998)

Fluid Supply

Further, the present application may utilize an ink delivery system to the ink jet head. Delivery systems relating to the supply of ink to a series of ink jet nozzles are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications, the disclosure of which are hereby incorporated by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian US Patent/Patent Provisional Filing Application Number Date Title and Filing Date PO8003 15-Jul-97 Supply Method and 6,350,023 Apparatus (F1) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8005 15-Jul-97 Supply Method and 6,318,849 Apparatus (F2) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9404 23-Sep-97 A Device and Method (F3) 09/113,101 (Jul. 10, 1998)

MEMS Technology

Further, the present application may utilize advanced semiconductor microelectromechanical techniques in the construction of large arrays of ink jet printers. Suitable microelectromechanical techniques are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian US Patent/Patent Provisional Application Number Filing Date Title and Filing Date PO7943 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS01) PO8006 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS02) 6,087,638 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8007 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS03) 09/113,093 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8008 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS04) 6,340,222 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8010 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS05) 6,041,600 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8011 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS06) 6,299,300 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7947 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS07) 6,067,797 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7945 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS08) 09/113,081 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7944 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS09) 6,286,935 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7946 15-Jul-97 A device (MEMS10) 6,044,646 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9393 23-Sep-97 A Device and Method 09/113,065 (MEMS11) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0875 12-Dec-97 A Device (MEMS12) 09/113,078 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0894 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method 09/113,075 (MEMS13) (Jul. 10, 1998)

IR Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of a disposable camera system such as those described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian Provisional US Patent/Patent Number Filing Date Title Application and Filing Date PP0895 12-Dec-97 An Image Creation Method and 6,231,148 Apparatus (IR01) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0870 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR02) 09/113,106 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0869 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR04) 6,293,658 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0887 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and 09/113,104 Apparatus (IR05) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0885 12-Dec-97 An Image Production System 6,238,033 (IR06) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0884 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and 6,312,070 Apparatus (IR10) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0886 12-Dec-97 Image Creation Method and 6,238,111 Apparatus (IR12) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0871 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR13) 09/113,086 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0876 12-Dec-97 An Image Processing Method and 09/113,094 Apparatus (IR14) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0877 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR16) 6,378,970 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0878 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR17) 6,196,739 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0879 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR18) 09/112,774 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0883 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR19) 6,270,182 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0880 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR20) 6,152,619 (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0881 12-Dec-97 A Device and Method (IR21) 09/113,092 (Jul. 10, 1998)

DotCard Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of a data distribution system such as that described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian US Patent/Patent Provisional Application Number Filing Date Title and Filing Date PP2370 16-Mar-98 Data Processing Method 09/112,781 and Apparatus (Dot01) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP2371 16-Mar-98 Data Processing Method 09/113,052 and Apparatus (Dot02) (Jul. 10, 1998)

Artcam Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of camera and data processing techniques such as an Artcam type device as described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian Provisional US Patent/Patent Number Filing Date Title Application and Filing Date PO7991 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/113,060 Apparatus (ART01) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7988 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 6,476,863 Apparatus (ART02) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7993 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/113,073 Apparatus (ART03) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9395 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,322,181 (ART04) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8017 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,747 Apparatus (ART06) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8014 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART07) 6,227,648 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8025 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,750 Apparatus (ART08) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8032 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,746 Apparatus (ART09) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7999 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,743 Apparatus (ART10) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7998 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,742 Apparatus (ART11) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8031 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,741 Apparatus (ART12) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8030 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART13) 6,196,541 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7997 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART15) 6,195,150 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7979 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART16) 6,362,868 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8015 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART17) 09/112,738 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7978 15-Jul-97 Media Device (ART18) 09/113,067 (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7982 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,431,669 (ART19) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7989 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,362,869 (ART20) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8019 15-Jul-97 Media Processing Method and 6,472,052 Apparatus (ART21) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7980 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 6,356,715 Apparatus (ART22) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8018 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,777 Apparatus (ART24) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7938 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/113,224 Apparatus (ART25) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8016 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 6,366,693 Apparatus (ART26) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8024 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 6,329,990 Apparatus (ART27) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7940 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,072 (ART28) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7939 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/112,785 (ART29) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8501 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 6,137,500 Apparatus (ART30) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8500 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,796 Apparatus (ART31) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7987 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,071 (ART32) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8022 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 6,398,328 Apparatus (ART33) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8497 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 09/113,090 Apparatus (ART34) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8020 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,431,704 (ART38) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8023 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,222 (ART39) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8504 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,786 Apparatus (ART42) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8000 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,415,054 (ART43) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7977 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/112,782 (ART44) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7934 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,056 (ART45) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7990 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,059 (ART46) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8499 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 6,486,886 Apparatus (ART47) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8502 11-Aug-97 Image Processing Method and 6,381,361 Apparatus (ART48) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7981 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,317,192 (ART50) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7986 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,057 (ART51) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO7983 15-Jul-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,054 (ART52) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8026 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,752 Apparatus (ART53) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8027 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,759 Apparatus (ART54) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO8028 15-Jul-97 Image Processing Method and 09/112,757 Apparatus (ART56) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9394 23-Sep-97 Image Processing Method and 6,357,135 Apparatus (ART57) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9396 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/113,107 (ART58) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9397 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,271,931 (ART59) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9398 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,353,772 (ART60) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9399 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,106,147 (ART61) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9400 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/112,790 (ART62) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9401 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,304,291 (ART63) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9402 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 09/112,788 (ART64) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9403 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,305,770 (ART65) (Jul. 10, 1998) PO9405 23-Sep-97 Data Processing Method and Apparatus 6,289,262 (ART66) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP0959 16-Dec-97 A Data Processing Method 6,315,200 and Apparatus (ART68) (Jul. 10, 1998) PP1397 19-Jan-98 A Media Device (ART69) 6,217,165 (Jul. 10, 1998) 

I claim:
 1. A print roll unit comprising: a housing comprising a first cover portion attached to a second cover portion, the housing including a slot; a longitudinally extending core rotatably mounted inside the housing; an ink supply contained within the core; a substantially cylindrical former positioned about the core; a roll of print media wound about the former; and, at least two pinch rollers arranged with respect to a drive roller so that a de-curling force is imparted to the print media as the print media exits the housing via the slot.
 2. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the core includes an ink outlet at one end to establish fluid communication between the ink supply and an external printhead.
 3. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ink supply includes a plurality of elongate compartments for storing different coloured inks.
 4. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive roller mechanically engages an external drive motor so as to be rotated and thereby transport the print media from the roll of print media to the slot.
 5. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive roller has a geared axle that extends beyond the housing for engagement with the external drive motor via a corresponding gear.
 6. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first cover portion and the second cover portion include complementary formations to enable the cover portions to be snap-fitted together.
 7. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the slot is provided as a slot in one of the cover portions.
 8. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the two pinch rollers are passive rollers.
 9. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive roller is mounted to the first cover portion and the pinch rollers are mounted to the second cover portion.
 10. The print roll unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pinch rollers are snap fitted to formations defined by the housing.
 11. A camera comprising a print roll unit as claimed in claim 1 and a printer in fluid communication with the core and configured to print captured images on the print media with ink stored in the core. 